Surf Rod Recommendations? - Found the Alvey!

[fishinggirl]

Hello,
Thanks again to everyone that gave me such great advice! I've managed to locate hubby's Alvey reel and what is left of his rod! He has a 500 B-C model Alvey. Other markings on it are 'MK-II', '500g-5kg line capacity', 'easy cast graphite' and 'anti-reverse action' which is probably all standard Alvey stuff. His rod is a real oldie - he probably got it 10 years ago! There's not much info on it except that it's a 'powerrod sea knight'.

I asked my local tackle shop which of their rods would be suitable (they didn't have many, may have to travel further afield) - they seemed to think the type/diameter of Alvey didn't matter when picking a rod (which seemed odd? :-/) They had Snyderglas rods (no 'live fibre' ones that I could see) in a 4-wrap (2-piece - probably preferable for when we go camping/fishing) and a 7-wrap 1-piece. Would the 4-wrap be sufficient? It's a low-mount. I think it cost $169.

If not, I found some online - http://www.fishouttawater.com.au/main_listitems.asp?cat=11&CatDescr=RODS&Cat2=BeachR&Cat2Descr=Beach+Rods has a large selection, assuming it's all in stock. Not sure if any there are particularly noteworthy? This shop is also about 45mins drive from where I live, so that's an option too.

I wish we were near Aspley's Pick n' Pay! We're from Brissy, but recently moved to Sydney (missing Qld terribly though! :'()

Many thanks for any advice!

[fish2eat]

OK - at leasr we know what we are dealing with here.

Without pulling any punches, the 500 series is not really a serious beach fishermans piece of equipment, you can buy them new around the $50 mark, so maybe spending $169 on the rod might be a bit overboard. The 500 series is for estury and very light surf applications, one step up from the kids/beginners 400 series.

My suggestion would be to go to an Alvey dealer somewhere and get him a brand bew Alvey combo, with maybe a 550 or 600 series reel and matched rod. That way he has got a complete and upgraded package, and you will get this for under $150.

Cheers

[2iar]

Good advice.

I'd also mention that if he's only getting a new rod every 10 years, I'd spend a few extra bucks on a better one. It's not clear from your post whther you realise that "Wilson" manufacture the Live Fibre range, and not Snyderglass. $250 would get you a much nicer and lighter combo - if it's a long beach rod, they can get a bit heavy after a long session.

Having said that, I've got 10'6" and 13' Alvey rods matched to the reels and they're ok - just a bit harder work on a long day. I'm not doing enough beach fishing these days to justify new rods, but I will one day.

Good luck,
Mike

[theoldlegend]

Hi Juliette,

From your earlier posts, I was picturing a bigger diameter reel than the 500 BC that hubby has. The 500 is probably more suited to estuary fishing, but could still be used in light surf conditions, but you would need a lighter rod to suit it. You mentioned a 4 wrap rod for $169, which I think is a bit rude. A quality 4 wrap 10 foot 6 inch (4126) should go for about $130 to $140 and should match to the reel OK. As you probably know, the term 500 simply means that it's 5 inches in diameter measured across the top face of the reel. A 600 reel is 6 inches diameter and so on.

As fish2eat said, another option is to buy a matched combo such as an Alvey rod and say an Alvey 600 reel for about $150. Then you'd have a spare reel as well that hubby could change to suit the conditions. You could get him a 300 metre reel of Platypus Platinum line (10-12 lb) with the change.

Something to think about.

TOL

[masterdusky]

fishinggirl... IMO I would opt for the 7 wrap.... as long as its a 7144..which means 7 wraps... 14"4 in length... i too wouldnt be overly concerned on the diameter of the reel...but as said..... u may want to look at getter a newer model... possibly something starting with a 6 IE: 650c5 etc as this indicates its a 6 inch diameter..... the 7 wrap will suffise for littlies :D like whiting right up to jew and greenback tailor so its a good allrounder.... the 4 wrap is lighter so if he wanted to specialise in whiting bream and the lighter species opt for that...BUT in saying that the smaller diameter alvey would be the go....

a good combo imo would be a 650c5 which comes with a drag system,mated to a low mount 7144...there u have i t ..... .:D

[Bashir]

That reel would go great with a 4144 style rod. Perfect for bream, whiting, flathead, dart in the surf and would also handle tailor with ease. the 4126 as mentioned above would also be great.

7144 means 7 wraps, 144 inches, not 14'4' , the same goes for the 4144.

[4x4frog]

Fishinggirl,
Having been an Alvey fisher all my life I'd recommend a 600A5 or 600c5 for a 7144 rod. Being only 12ft the 6'' alveys would be fine. If you bought him a 13ft rod a 6 1/2'' reel may-be a better match.
The thing to keep in mind is the drag reels are a little heavier than the non-drag ones too and for a light rod the non-drag are better suited. All other things aside, the standard reels are a great general purpose reel and I find I only ever need a drag reel for rock fishing.

[straddie]

Heya Fishinggirl

If you haven't got a big party planned, I would suggest you wear only a big red ribbon around yourself and introduce yourself as the first part of his present. The second part being the cash for you both to go down and pick out a fishing outfit to replace the one he broke. :D

Being a 10 year old rod he may have been just making do with what he had and may want to change to something more substantial. As some of the others have said the 500 is a good but reasonably small reel and if long casting in the surf would become tiresome retieving line. If you have your heart set on getting him a rod though I would suggest a 2 piece bream rod, no more than 8 or 10 foot long. It would be ok for light surf work, not be too long for a boat and easily transportable for camping and shore fishing.

[fishinggirl]

Many thanks to everyone who replied! Lots to think about... your feedback has helped enormously. Off to the tackle shop again today! :D

Juliette